It wasn't surprising that future floors—especially the ones shared with other Awakeners—were so massive that they had to be divided into multiple areas.

The fourth floor seemed to follow that same concept, much like the [Novice Trial] before it.

However, it was slightly more condensed, with only two major zones: the mountain climb leading up to the cavern and the cavern itself.

Each area had its own environment, its own set of challenges, and, of course, its own monsters.

Karl and Celeste stood at the cavern's entrance, facing a new set of enemies—creatures far more aggressive than the ones they had fought outside.

[Level 23 Frigid Stalker][Level 24 Hoarfrost Wraith]

Unlike the monsters they had dealt with in the open mountain area, these ones seemed adapted to fighting in tight spaces.

That was going to be a problem.

The cavern wasn't exactly small, but it was narrow enough that fighting here would be very different from the battles outside.

Karl immediately understood what that meant—he couldn't rely on sheer numbers anymore.

Ever since he first gained his summoning ability, he had always envisioned an overwhelming army of spirits, a tide of allies so vast that they could simply crush any enemy through sheer force.

But reality had hit him hard.

Summoning spirits took time.

They could be lost even faster.

And maintaining too many at once in a confined space like this was nothing more than a liability.

That was why, this time, he held back.

The cavern before them was teeming with monsters—dozens at least.

And that was only counting what they could see.

The [Frigid Stalkers] were a problem.

Given their name, they likely had some form of camouflage ability.

There were probably more hidden in the shadows, waiting for an opportunity to strike.

"Let's be carefu—" Karl started, intending to give his usual warning.

But his spirits had already moved.

The [Shadow Assassin Lizard] and his newly summoned [Frosted Mantis] lunged forward, closing the distance between them and the monsters in a flash.

Karl didn't stop them.

Instead, he raised a hand, signaling his other spirits to wait.

These two were his elite summons—boss-type spirits.

If they couldn't handle regular monsters like this on their own, then they had no business being part of his main fighting force.

This was a test.

If they weren't strong enough now, they would be crushed later when facing a real boss.

He needed to train them properly.

—Fwip! Slash!—

The [Shadow Assassin Lizard] darted through the cavern with blinding speed, its two shadow-forged daggers leaving thin black lines in the air as they carved through the monsters.

Three [Frigid Stalkers] dropped instantly, their heads cleanly severed before they could even react.

The lizard had aimed perfectly for their weak points, delivering lethal strikes in an instant.

The remaining stalkers lunged in retaliation, slashing at the spirit with their frost-coated claws.

But the lizard was too fast.

It twisted and weaved through the attacks, leaving only a faint streak of darkness in its wake.

When it couldn't dodge, it blocked, using its daggers to deflect the blows with pinpoint precision.

Meanwhile, the [Hoarfrost Wraiths] took a different approach.

They weren't physical fighters.

Instead, they opened their hollow mouths and exhaled a thick, bone-chilling mist.

[Frozen Breath: applies "Frost" to all targets in range, reducing movement speed by 40%.]

A dangerous ability.

If the lizard got caught in it, its speed advantage would be completely neutralized.

But they had made one critical mistake.

They had forgotten about the mantis.

[Frosted Mantis is immune to all frost-related skills.]

Karl's eyes widened as he saw the notification.

It was the first time the system had explicitly informed him of an immunity like that, but he wasn't about to complain.

A slow grin formed on his face.

That meant the [Frozen Breath] was useless.

The mantis moved unhindered, cutting down the wraiths before they could even finish releasing their mist.

Its bladed arms sliced through them like paper, their ghostly forms dissipating in an instant.

It was a massacre.

The lizard and mantis worked together seamlessly, covering each other's weaknesses and dismantling the enemy forces with ruthless efficiency.

The wraiths never got a chance to slow the lizard, and the stalkers couldn't lay a single claw on the mantis.

Within two minutes, the battle was over.

The cavern's entrance—now littered with the remnants of their foes—was completely cleared.

Karl exhaled as he received the system notification for their earned experience.

That had gone better than expected.

He stepped forward, retrieving the scattered [Spirit Orbs] from the fallen monsters—twenty-three in total.

Seeing how only two of his spirits had been needed to handle the fight, he made a quick decision.

With a snap of his fingers, he unsummoned the rest.

Only Frappy remained, still perched on Celeste's head.

"I'll call you later, Sovaryn. Don't cause trouble in the cemetery, you're the leader."

Karl gave a thumbs-up to the [Sovereign Wolf], who gave a short nod before vanishing into a mist alongside the others.

With that, the group moved forward, dispatching any stray monsters they encountered along the way.

"I feel like I'm useless," Celeste yawned, stretching lazily.

"But it does feel good to be carried~"

"Balancing between letting my spirits fight and actually fighting myself is difficult," Karl admitted with a shrug.

"For now, though, I'll let them handle it."

As a [Spirit Summoner], he had been forced to train and fight personally due to the restrictions of the [World of Spirits].

He doubted that the "Champion" with the [Necromancer] class had to deal with the same struggles.

Their summons could do all the work for them.

But Karl didn't care.

He had always wanted to be strong himself anyway.

Comparing himself to others was pointless.

The cavern stretched on for a while before suddenly opening up into a massive chamber.

Celeste immediately narrowed her eyes.

"Boss room."

"Yeah."

The [Shadow Assassin Lizard] and [Frosted Mantis] tensed, sensing the change in the atmosphere.

The moment Karl stepped forward—

—RUMBLE! RUMBLE!—

The entire cavern shook.

Chunks of rock broke loose from the ceiling, crashing down toward them.

The spirits reacted instantly.

The lizard and mantis cut the falling debris into pieces midair.

Karl swung his [Spectral Blade], slicing apart anything that came too close.

Celeste's [Frenzied Rabbit] slashed away any remaining fragments that threatened her.

Then, from deeper within the chamber, something stirred.

A massive shadow emerged from the far end of the cave, accompanied by the sound of heavy, echoing footsteps.

The boss had arrived.

[Level 23 Frozen Tuskreaper (Boss Monster)]

[Strength - 270][Stamina - 250][Agility - 120][Mana - 90]

Karl's eyes flickered over its stats.

"It's much stronger than the mantis lords. Be careful."

The boss was enormous—a towering, fur-covered mammoth.

Its thick brown coat was layered with patches of ice, forming a natural armor.

Its eyes glowed an unnatural blue, radiating pure aggression.

But the most dangerous part was its tusks.

They were massive, curved, and coated in permafrost, shimmering with an eerie frost-blue hue.

Each breath it exhaled released a visible mist, dropping the temperature in the chamber even further.

This was it.

The final challenge standing between them and the [Fifth Floor]—the end of the [Tower's Tutorial].

"RAAAAAWRRR!"

The Tuskreaper let out a deafening roar, sending a powerful shockwave across the chamber.

The force pushed Karl, Celeste, and their spirits back slightly, but they held their ground.

No one wavered.

This was it.

The last fight of the fourth floor.

And they were going to win.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.